TABLE-TOPPING FC WindowMan suffered defeat for the first time in the Wey-mouth Carpets Direct Sunday Premiership as they went down at the hands of the Chapelhay.

The 3-1 result was made all the more impressive as the league leaders, depleted by suspensions and injuries, drew first blood at the Marsh.

A Sean Stewart free-kick, awarded for a foul on former Chapelhay winger Marc Dalley, found the head of striker Bobby Jones 10 minutes in and he glanced past keeper Dan Quinault to nudge the visitors in front.

Undeterred, the hosts hit back and a Derek Puckett header forced a decent stop from visiting gloveman Anthony Luque.

The potent frontman was not to be denied a second time as he pulled his side level midway through the first half.

A long punt from Quinault left Puckett one-on-one with defender Wayne Day and he outmuscled his marker to fire past Luque.

A determined Chapelhay continued to take the game to WindowMan as the second half got underway and they got their reward on the hour mark when a through ball found Matt Prince, who calmly rounded Luque before slotting into an empty net.

WindowMan, now desperately searching for an equaliser to maintain their unbeaten run, then saw an inch-perfect pass from Stewart just evade Phil Lee.

And the game was wrapped up in the latter stages as Puckett fired home to bag his second of the morning.

WindowMan assistant Rob Pavey said: “We’re all disappointed, not only with the result but the way we played. Chapelhay wanted every loose ball and they were too much for us when they broke.

“We’ve now got to put this result behind us and focus on the next game against Railway. We’ve got some big players to come back in two weeks’ time and we were missing three key players through injuries, so we won’t dwell too much on the loss.”

In the chasing pack, the Rodwell failed to take full advantage as an injury-time leveller denied them victory against Snookes.

Snookes only had one recognisable defender available but the return of keeper Ian Bickerstaff, following a lengthy spell out with a broken foot, was a huge bonus and he proved instrumental in securing the draw.

The game started on a fairly even footing but it was Snookes who should have taken the lead through Dan Cook.

The Rodwell attackers found Bickerstaff in superb form while at the other end Matt Williams and James Baker wasted clear goal-scoring chances for Snookes.

The Rodwell upped the tempo in the second half and only two class saves from Bickerstaff kept the scoresheet blank.

With the pressure becoming more constant it was something of a surprise that it took until the 75th minute for the Rodwell to take the lead – albeit in the cruellest of fashions.

A Darren Samways shot deflected off Nathan Aston and completely wrong-footed Bickerstaff.

The visitors looked set for victory but in the dying moments good work from Michael McMurray forced a corner and as a last throw of the dice every Snookes player, bar Bickerstaff, piled forward.

A perfect delivery from Williams found Ashley Scott who saw his bullet header beat the keeper to ensure a share of the spoils.

That draw saw Tuatara move into third spot courtesy of a 5-2 win over Moby Dick’s.

T-Bar took the lead at Budmouth after James Roper stole possession before driving towards goal. His shot was parried by the visiting keeper but Danny Dancer was on hand to bundle home the rebound.

Mobys recovered from the early setback and saw Michael Stone drive home a fine effort from 20 yards.

And the away side edged ahead soon after when Dan Magee found the bottom corner after cutting in from the left-hand side.

But that was as good as it got for Moby Dick’s, who finished the half 4-2 down following efforts from Roper, Simon Meadows and Dancer.

The second half produced just one further goal and it came via the head of Meadows, who flicked on a long throw from Matt Camp.

Elsewhere, Bar 314 continued their climb up the table with an 8-0 hammering of rock-bottom Galaxy Windows, who had keeper Pete Cowne to thank for keeping the score below double figures.

James Douglas, Bryn Lewis and new signing Ethan Devaney netted a brace apiece while James Vincent and an own goal completed the rout.

In the Championship, AFC Duke of Albany maintained their grip on top spot with a 3-1 win over the Market House.

However, it was the latter who struck first midway through the first half with a flicked header beating Duke keeper Neil Innes.

The league leaders turned the tables in the second half and grab-bed an equaliser, courtesy of Dave Washington, six minutes into the restart.

Fitness proved key for the Duke as they continued to press before edging in front with a tasty shot from left-back Norton Rogers.

The Market House refused to give up but saw their task made even harder when Rogers drilled home his second from long-range.

Duke boss Rob Owen said: “Although we have been at the top since the start of the season we still have a lot of games left against a few strong sides, it is important for us as a team to stay focused and work hard right until the end.”